Fire Emblem 8 point 7?
by Franchise
Summary: It's Fire Emblem 8: the Sacred Stones...starring the cast of Fire Emblem 7? Officaly back from the dead. Ch 5X: Why is this a Gaiden level anyway?
1. Prologue

_In an age long past…_

That means a long time ago.

_Evil flooded over the land. _

_Creatures awash in the dark_

_ride ran wild, pushing mankind_

_to the brink of annihilation._

That's not good. Nice use of a water metaphor though.

_In its despair, mankind _

_appealed to the heavens, and_

_from a blinding light came hope._

_**THE SACRED STONES**_

Dun Dun Dun.

_These five glorious treasures _

_held the power to dispel evil._

You don't say.

_The hero Grado and his warriors _

_used the Sacred Stones to combat_

_evil's darkness. They defeated_

_the Demon Kind and sealed his_

_soul away within the stones._

Yay!

_With the darkness imprisoned, _

_peace returned to Magvel._

Un hunh.

_But this peace would not last..._

Jeez, this opening is long. Let's just go to the cliff notes version. It is 800 years later. Everything has been all fine and dandy due to the peace and prosperity that has existed across the land. Those sacred stones are still floating around having been passed down through generation and now all the countries have one. There's Renais, Frelia, Jehanna, Rausten, and Grado. Carcino is also on the continent but it's not very important. Anyway, it's 803 and everything is all good till suddenly… Oh No! The Grado nation suddenly decides to attack Renais. With fewer soldiers, no expectation of an attack and a certain prince MIA, the troops easily make their way towards the castle's gates. In other words Renais is toast.

**Prologue: The Typical Opening Chapter where the Good Guy's Home Falls.**

A generic solider quickly runs through the halls of castle Renais. Even inside the sound of the ensuing battle can be heard as the walls shake from the attacks. Bursting into the throne room the generic solider, who from now on shall be known as Bob, calls out to the king.

"Your majesty, I bear bad news. The castle gate has been breached. The Emperor's forces are within the castle walls. The situation is much dire King Oswin."

King Oswin, a brown haired, older, serious looking man wearing the amour of a general gets up from the throne. "I see"

"The garrison has fallen. We lost contact with Prince Eliwood and we can expect no aid from his men. Your majesty, what are we to do?"

Oswin is silent for a few moments in thought pacing back. Finally he stops and looks directly at Bob. "…What else can we do? Order your man to lay down their arms."

A look of confusion appears on Bob's face. "Come again?"

"Tell the soldiers to stand down."

"But your highness, shouldn't we keep on fighting? Even if it is hopeless, we would be showing Grado that Renais never surrenders and we would all have noble and heroic deaths because we battled to the very end. Isn't this a better option?"

"No," Oswin simply replies, "Besides it is quite possible that the Grado forces have just come for a pleasant visit."

"Yeah sure," Bob mutters under his breath turning to leave.

As the solider leaves, a beautiful young woman dress in a cape, red shirt and white skirt makes her way in, her long green hair tied back behind her head.

"Hey Dad. What's up?"

"Lyndis. Technically, the more appropriate thing to say would be: Hello father. What is happening? But let us not worry about that for the moment. Tell me, are you wearing the bracelet I gave you?"

A surprise look appears on Lyn's face as she raises her arm showing a bracelet on it. "You mean the cheap trinket you gave me as a Christmas gift last year? Yeah, it's right here."

"Good. Marcus."

A paladin with purple hair and a matching goatee steps into view on horseback.

"Yes, your majesty?"

"Take my daughter and head for Frelia. The king is a somewhat honorable man. I trust he will keep you safe."

"Understood. And what of your majesty?"

"Me? I shall remain here." Oswin declares causing both Lyn and Marcus to gasp.

Oswin begins to pace again. "We have long held Grado among our dearest allies, yet now, they attack? I must know why. Am I somehow responsible for this? Have I erred in my leadership?

Was it a mistake for me to cut back funding on the military and devote it to other things like education and the arts?"

"Yes" Marcus says.

"Father, you can't do this. It's completely foolish! If your staying, then so am I!"

"No Lyndis. It is far too dangerous."

"Aww...but I really wanted to fight and kill some back guys." Lyn says pouting.

"Don't take that tone with me young lady. You can't always get what you want. Look at me. There is a good chance I could be dead within the next 10 minutes but you don't hear me complaining. Anyway, go now Marcus! Take her to safety!"

"Father!"

"Forgive me your highness"

Grabbing on to Lyndis, Marcus pulls her atop his horse rides off. Oswin watches them go sighing deeply as the enemy begins to move in.

"Lyndis, Eliwood, you must survive." Oswin then turns his attention to the entering Grado forces. "Good afternoon gentlemen. Would anyone like something to drink?"

-----------

Outside the castle, Marcus stands by another man on horseback, his facial features covered by a shaggy mop of green hair.

"General Marcus"

"Lowen, ride ahead and bring word of our coming to Frelia. A single rider has better offs of passing unseen by Grado's men. And if not, well you're a sacrificial pawn anyway. Convey to the throne all that has happened here and petition for rainforests."

"U...understood," Lowen says saluting. "I am on my way!"

Kicking his horse into a gallop, Lowen speeds off before colliding with a tree five seconds later.

"I'm alright" he calls out before heading off again.

"Now then princess Lyndis we must…quickly behind me!"

Descending from the skies are three Wyverns. The middle one lands the closest to Marcus and Lyn with the other two flanking it. Atop the beast sits a fully armored man with long flowing black hair and a look of evil in his eyes.

"You are the princess of Renais, aren't you? My blade…err I mean my spear hungers for your blood. Out of my way fool," he says to Marcus, "the wench is coming with me."

"Never!" Marcus screams charging in on the attack.

"I am Karel, the Moonstone and Grado's finest general! Prepare to feed my weapon's hunger as you become nothing but a mere corpse!"

Marcus swings down with his sword but Karel easily dodges and stabs him in the gut with his lance.

"Ahhh…No! Run Away!"

Marcus spins around and grabs Lyn again hurrying away. Karel looks on with a slight bit of amusement.

"You are weak. Pathetically weak. I do not hunger for such morsels. So fly away little man. Fly away. Try to become stronger so that some day you may become a worthy opponent for me and my weapon. Hahahahahahah!"

The other two Wyvern riders nervously take a few steps back.

-----------

In some forest area somewhere…

Marcus looks back at Lyn who is now walking besides him. "Princess Lyn! I cannot see any more of Grado's men! Therefore I believe we have earned our selves a short rest. Also, please forgive me for grabbing you so… brusquely earlier."

Lyn smiles sweetly at him. "It's alright Marcus" she says before lashing out with her hand and slapping him in the face hard. "Now I forgive you. So are you okay with that injury of yours?"

"Of course, I am fine. I cannot let a few broken bones and massive internal bleeding stop me from my duty. We must press on to Frelia and fulfill his majesty's wishes."

"Suit yourself," Lyn mutters putting away her first aid kit. "My father, I wonder how he is doing inside the castle on his own. And what of my brother, on the Grado front?

We've heard nothing from him for days."

"King Oswin and Prince Eliwood are both brave and valiant men. Even the Grado Empire could not keep them in check. Yes, I'm sure that they are both fine."

Back at the castle…

"Oh God! The pain!"

-----------

"Yes, perfectly fine. In any case, we most head for Frelia post haste."

"Yes, of course. You're right. Come Marcus, let us go."

"Once we cross that bridge, we will be in Frelia, near Border Mulan. Let us precede, Princess Lyndis. Your highness, I won't lie to you. This will not be an easy ride.

Please, take this rapier."

"A rapier?" Lyn asks blinking a few times.

"Is something the matter?" Marcus asks confused.

"Well, I really don't like rapiers. You wouldn't happen to have something cooler by any chance, like a Mani Katti?"

"No. I'm afraid not. Princess, we really must be going."

Lyn picks up the rapier studying it in her hands for a few moments before shaking her head. "Nah. I don't want it." she says before chucking it over her shoulder.

"You there! Renais Dogs! Where do you think your going?" O'Neill yells emerging from behind them with two of his fellow fighters.

- Swoosh -

The rapier flies down and impales itself on O'Neill's head.

"What? How?" he manages to get out before falling to the ground.

The two remaining fighters look at one another before turning around and quickly fleeing.

"Well that was rather anticlimactic," Marcus mutters.

"Yeah" Lyn agrees. "Oh well, should we be off?"

"Yes. Yes, we should." the paladin replies as he and Lyn head off into Frelia.


	2. Chapter 1

"Just…just a bit farther"

Lowen pants hard as he urges his horse onward, fighting through exhaustion as they continue. Bursting through a grove of trees, he finally spies his destination. Castle Frelia.

"Hello there!" Lowen yells riding forward.

On top of a castle turret, a guard peers down at him. "We have an enemy charging towards us! Archers, prepare to open fire!"

"No. Don't shoot. I'm from Renais! I've come to petition for rainforests. Wait, that doesn't sound right."

"Oh, okay." the guard says signaling the archers to stop. "By the way kid, you might want to watch out for the…"

- Splash -

"…moat."

**Ch 1: Escape in Less then 30 Minutes or your Next Rescue is Free!**

In the area of Mulan, resides one your typical style fortresses. It has all the latest amenities. Stone reinforced walls, plush carpeting, and of course a do it yourself sundae bar. But importantly is the person inside said fortress.

A young woman dressed in royal clothing with tiny white wings in her short red hair waits anxiously. Her face clearly shows worry as a solider comes up to her.

"Princess Priscilla! Grado forces are approaching!"

"What? So soon? This isn't good."

"We are no match for them. Princess, you must return to the castle."

"But I can't. We haven't found Lyn and her companions yet. She's my friend and I want to help her and share some ice cream. Wait. I know. Go and ask Father err I mean King Merlinus for some additional troops."

"Yes, your highness"

"Lyn, please be alright." Priscilla mutters softly while eating a bit more of her sundae. "Hey, this is really good."

Outside the fortress, a group of Grado troops moves stealthily. While maybe stealthily isn't the right word considering they are in an open field.

"Commander Breguet" one man says to their leader "the enemy appears to be fortifying its position in the castle.

Breguet scoffs at this. "They're brave, I'll give them that. But they have no hope of stopping our advance. Do you know why?"

"Because we are easily outnumber them and have better weapons?"

"Of course not! It is because I am your invincible leader due to the simple fact that I… am a macho man."

Breguet's troops begin to groan. "Oh no. He's doing it again."

"Macho, macho man. I've got to be, a macho man. Sing it with me guys."

"We'd rather not sir."

"Fine. Just stand there and watch my manliness at work."

Spinning his spear around Breguet charges his heavy knight armored body forward and ramming straight through the single guard at the entrance to the fort.

"Ha! That's what happens when you face the might of my macho powered lance."

-------

"St-stop right there" Priscilla says nervously backing away from the troops. "Or else, you will have to deal with me. I got a spoon and I'm not afraid to use it."

"Really?" Breguet asks, "And who might you be?"

"Oh. I am Priscilla, princess of Frelia. You have abused my homeland for far too long and therefore I will now politely ask you to stop."

A smirk appears on Breguet's face. "So you're the beloved princess of Frelia who would make the perfect hostage and bargaining chip with the king."

"Opps, I probably shouldn't have said that. But if you don't leave my father will fine you and my brother will hunt you down and hurt you. He's really violent."

"Me and my macho machoness fear nothing! Guards, throw her in the dungeon. You do have one of those, right?"

"It's two floor downs and to your right. You can't miss it." Priscilla says politely as the guards begin to drag her away, "No! Let me go!"

-------

It is at this point in time that our heroes finally arrive on the scene.

"Marcus, check this out."

Marcus surveys over the area. "Yes. It would seem that Grado's army has already reached Frelia. A pity. Anyway, this area is way too dangerous right now so let us be on our way."

Lyn stares back at him with disbelief and anger in her eyes. "Are your kidding me? We can't leave things like this. Do you want all the horrible stuff that happened in Renais to occur here? Homes destroyed, possessions stolen, people executed…"

"Higher costs to get into the strip club"

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Come on Marcus. Please." Lyn begs

Marcus stares down at her puppy dog eyes. "Alright, I suppose the two of us can try and single handily retake the area despite having no idea how many soldiers there are."

"Perfect," Lyn says smiling, "Now then, hand me over your sword since I don't have a weapon."

"But shouldn't I protect you?"

"And let you hog all the experience points? Forget it! Now lets go!"

Lyn grabs the steel sword from Marcus's hand and hurries off. Letting out a sigh, the paladin quickly follows her.

"I hope Lowen gets back with our help soon"

-------

Lowen looks on in dismay as his horse struggles to move through the thick swampy bog that he is in.

"Umm I don't mean to be critical but are you sure we're going the right way Sir Wallace?"

A large bald headed knight looks back at the young cavalier. "Ha ha ha haaa! Of course I'm sure! I have a perfect sense of direction! Besides, I have the map right in front of me!" he yells holding it up in his hand.

Lowen moves a bit closer. After studying the map for a minute, he removes it from Wallace's hands and turns it right side up.

"Ah. I see."

--------

"Ha!"

Lyn quickly stabs her steel sword into the gut of one fighter. As she does another one comes from behind her swinging his axe. Quickly she spins dodging the blow, kicks him and slashes at him decapitating him.

"See Marcus? I told you this would be easy."

Nearby, Marcus runs his lance through a solider. "Yes, almost a little too easy…"

"There they are. Stragglers from Renais! Don't let them escape!" A voice yells as a few more soldiers appear behind them.

"D'oh! Princess, reinforcements are approaching us fast."

Lyn looks over at him. "You take care of them. I'm going for the head honcho."

As Lyn moves forward, Marcus lets out a growl. "Lowen, what is taking you so long?"

--------

"Brrr, so…so cold…"

Teeth chattering and body shaking, Lowen struggles against the raging blizzard and six feet of snow on the ground. Just ahead of him, Wallace holds his hand over his eyes trying to see the terrain ahead.

"Blast! I could swear Mulan was right over that hill. Oh wait, there's a sign up ahead. That'll tell us how close we are."

Moving forward, the Frelian knight reaches the sign and brushes snow off it, reading it along the way.

"Welcome to……Canada?"

--------

"Curse my men and their lack of manliness!" Breguet complains. "Hmm?"

Lyn walks forward, arms behind her back and a cute smile on her face. "Excuse me sir. I'm selling Girl Guide cookies. Would you be interested in buying some?"

"What types do you have?"

"We got chocolate, vanilla, and a whole lot of pain!" Lyn roars as she whips out her sword and starts striking him like crazy, "Take that!"

Breguet just stands there, yawning lightly, as the sword bounces harmlessly off his amour. "Are you done? Good. Then, it's my turn." He says reaching for his lance.

"Okay," Lyn pants heavily, now a safe distance from Breguet. "This guy might be a little bit harder to beat."

Marcus nods his head in agreement. "I was talking to someone in a nearby home. They suggested that a rapier might be able to pierce through his amour. A pity we do not have one of those now since you threw away the one I gave you."

"Yeah, yeah. Rub it in. Anyway, are you just going to stand there or you going to go and take care of this guy?"

"Very well" Marcus says before galloping forward. "Have at thy knave!"

- Clang -

To Marcus's shock, Breguet blocks his silver lance with his iron one.

"Fools! When you realize that you can not match my awesome strength!"

"Hey, you are pretty strong" Lyn calls out, "Do you think I could feel your biceps?"

Breguet quickly turns to look at her with a wide grin. "Of course you can"

Marcus quickly drives his lance into him.

"What?" he cries out in pain looking at his wound. "Done…in…by my own… macho body. How…ironic."

--------

"Okay then." Lyn says happily, "We saved the area, defeated the boss, and I just finished my victory sundae. Now we can go."

"Finally."

The two set out from the fort and immediately bump into the approaching Lowen and Wallace.

"Sir Marcus. I have returned with help. This is Sir Wallace"

"Where are those spineless Grado dogs?"

Lyn smiles at both of them. "It is good to see you. Of course, it would have better an hour ago when there was actual fighting."

"Oh"

"That must mean the two of you have already freed Princess Pricilla. Good work." Wallace says.

Silence follows as Lyn and Marcus both blink and look at one another before looking back at them.

"Priscilla is here?"

"Umm hello?" Priscilla yells out shackled to a dungeon wall. "Is anyone up there going to rescue me? It's really cold down here. Plus, some rats are starting to nibble at my feet."

Some time later back at Castle Frelia……

King Merlinus, a balding man with blue hair and a small mustache cries out happily at the sight of his daughter. "Oh Pricilla! I'm so grateful to see you that you are alright. You don't know how worried I was that I would have to pay a huge ransom. You are never to leve the castle and take that kind of financial risk ever again."

"Oh father. Please don't be mad. I have good news. Come on out Lyn," she says as the Renais princess appears. "She rescued me…eventually."

"Oh little Lyndis, it warms my heart to see that you are well."

"Thank you, your highness. Tell me. Have you heard any news about my father or brother?"

A look of nervousness immediately forms on the king's face. "Oh yes…that. Err…well let me put it this way. Your daddy isn't going to be coming home for Christmas… or any other important family events for that matter.

"Oh no! Father!"

Lyn begins to cry as does Priscilla. Marcus lowers his head in silent prayer. Merlinus is silent as well until he suddenly snaps his fingers.

"I just remembered. Your brother is not dead."

"He's not?"

"Even as we speak, Prince Eliwood and his men are around Renvall, throwing rocks at Grado's troops and calling them all sorts of names. He has become quite the annoyance to them."

"I see," Lyn says, her tears ending and a look of determination taking their place. "In that case, I will ride to his aid.

"That would be suicide!" Merlinus yells out. "Besides, I sadly cannot spare any soldiers for you. The majority of our troops are rented by the hour and even now I am forced to pay them overtime. Then there is the fact that all the skilled ones were all taken by my son Raymond for his attack on Grado"

"I'll just have to go alone then. Marcus, Lowen, get ready."

"Wait a second. I'll probably regret this later but…Rebecca"

A girl with green pigtails and matching eyes appears out of nowhere. "Here, your highness."

"Lucius"

A priest with very long female like blonde hair steps into view. "You called my king?"

"Wallace,"

"Hahahaha! I'm ready for action!" The baldheaded knight from before declares.

King Merlinus turns his attention back to Lyn. "These are three of my weakest and therefore cheapest vessels. I give them to aid you in your cause. Plus I will give you a used wagon to hold supplies. Finally here is 50 gold. Sadly, that is all I can offer."

The three vessels nod in agreement to the orders.

Lyn bows her head in gratitude. "It is more then enough. Thank you."

"No. Thank me when you come back with you brother."

"Lyn, do you truly have to go?" Priscilla asks sadly, "I'm worried about Eliwood too but I don't want you getting hurt."

"I'm afraid so. The truth is, we are at war. Also, I'm too much of a thrill junkie to resist."

"Oh, what is wrong with the world? Why would Grado invade? Emperor Uther is a man of peace. And you and Eliwood are friends with Prince Hector, are you not? When will all this madness end?"

Lyn moves over and gives her friend a light hug. "I don't have any answers to your questions Priscilla. But I intend to find out. Or have Marcus and the rest of my new troops die trying!"

Nervous looks appear on the faces of Marcus, Lowen, Rebecca, Lucius, and Wallace as they all simultaneously gulp.


	3. Chapter 2

King Merlinus apologizes for not being a cheapskate and not providing Lyndis with any soldiers. Still, he does give her a small but trusted party of vassals. Lyn is very grateful for their aid, even if they are really weak.

"Hey," Rebecca yells out from atop her pegasus, "We're not that weak!"

Oh really. Then how come you're at level one and don't have a single point of experience?

Rebecca pauses and struggles to come up with a response.

I rest my case. Anyway, Lyn and the gang set off to Grado in pursuit of her missing brother. The first stop in their road trip is the remote village of Ide, which was, until very recently, a part of Renais. Here, Lyn sees the devastation of Renais with her own eyes. Yeah, like having her home conquered, father killed and best friend recently held hostage wasn't enough to get the point across.

**Chapter 2: The Good, The Protected, and The Clueless**

"Okay then," Lyn says unfolding a large map and holding it up so everyone can see it. "Marcus was nice enough to do up this map for us. And now that certain people are not navigating, we're actually going the right way"

Lowen lowers his head in shame while Wallace mumbles underneath his breathe, "My shortcut through the haunted forest would have worked."

"Anyway, we're going to travel south of Renais and pass through Serafew into Grado."

"This seems like a good plan," Lucius says softly, "Assuming we don't run into any enemy soldiers."

"Actually, with our luck we will probably encounter them several times," Marcus says dryly.

Rebecca looks over towards Lyn. "Princess, may I have leave to scout ahead? I'll have a better chance of spotting troops from the sky."

"Sure thing. Just watch out for enemy archers."

"Yes, your highness, I shall. I will prove to both you and that creepy voice from early that I am worthy of the honor of your trust."

Lyn watches Rebecca fly off. "She seems very……unpretentious."

"Unpretentious?" Lowen asks

"What? I'm allowed to have a large vocabulary"

On the other side of the mountains….

Bone, a bandit with a face only a blind mother could love looks over the nearby area. "Hey Boss! We got more villages to rob!"

Bazba, his boss looks over happily. "One, Two, Seven, umm Nine oh forgot it man. This war is so awesome! No soldiers to stop us or anything. So Bone, you're like totally in charge. Make sure you get all the rad stuff and bring it back to the base."

"I'm on it."

Inside a nearby village…

Two figures stand side by side. The first is a normal looking man with red hair and a slight goatee, wearing the cloths of an axe user. The other in contrast looks very different. He is huge muscular figure with tanned skin, blonde hair tied back into a ponytail and very little clothing on.

"Father!" the larger of the two shouts. "There are bandits approaching!"

"Hmm…," his father Dorcas says, "I'm getting you out of here Hawkeye. Just stay close to me!"

Back outside the nearby village….

"Take it down boys! Don't let anyone stand in your way!" Bone yells.

A bandit walks up to the village and hits it once with his ax. Due to weak building materials, plus the lack of carpentry skill used, the entire town instantly collapses. Hawkeye and Dorcas barely escape at the last second.

"Unnnng!"

"Hawkeye? What is it? What's wrong?"

"It is nothing father. Just merely a small paper cut. Like you, I am a warrior and will not be bested so easily"

A look of alarm forms on Dorcas's face. "Do not talk so foolishly. Why, that paper cut could end up becoming infected. Please! Somebody help my son!"

Back to the other side of the mountains where we started from…

Rebecca surveys the situation from the air. "Okay guys! We got bandits plus an injured kid due east of here!"

Lucius lowers his head. "So, we have reached our first dilemma. So should we quickly make our way through or…"

Lyn quickly cuts him off. "I explained this to Marcus and I'll explain it to all of you. We Do Not run away from fights! Got it? Now then, father can your staff help him?"

"Yes, I could heal his injuries but I would have to be near him to do so. These staffs don't work long distance you know."

"Fine then. Rebecca, grab the kid and bring him here for a touch up. The rest of you, spread out, warn the villagers, and take down these punks. It's showtime."

"Right, leave it to me!" Rebecca says confidently heading off.

Flying forward, the young girl quickly reaches the two fighting figures. Swooping down, she quickly rescues the weakened person and heads back.

"Not me," Dorcas yells. "My son!"

The pegasus comes to a screeching halt. "He's the kid?"

-------

"Ah. Here she comes now."

Rebecca awkwardly flies down with the very large Hawkeye in tow. As she reaches the ground, she awkwardly drops him before her and her steed fall down in a heap.

Lyn smiles at her. "Good job."

"Thanks," Rebecca pants out of breathe. "If you don't mind, I'll be over here. I think my pegasus and I just developed chronic back pains."

Lucius leans his staff over Hawkeye and with a light glow the young boy is healed. "There you are. All better now."

"Thank you. My name is Hawkeye. At this moment, my father is facing off against bandits on his own. It is vital that he receive assistance…"

"Hold on," Lyn says "Just take a deep breath and calm down, Hawkeye."

"But I am calm. Also, I know that you are about to stay I should wait here while you fight. However I can assure you that as I am the son of the great Dorcas. See?"

Lyn blinks Hawkeye holds up a tiny hatchet as proof of his fighting ability.

"Umm actually, I was just going to say feel free to join us."

"Ah. I see."

-------

"Bahahahaha!" Wallace declares looking at the armory shop keeper. "Give me all of your finest weapons!"

The shop keeper just stares at him. "That'll be 2120 gold."

Wallace confident grin immediately fades. "I'm a little short at the moment. What can I get for 50?"

"Here you are sir; one large stick and a couple of nails."

"Blast!"

-------

"This is terrible." a women in one of the villages moans. The bandits are coming. If we can't protect ourselves, we'll be doomed. Doomed I say."

In front of her, a woman with aqua colored hair and blue eyes nods her head in thought. "Perhaps…"

"Okay people. Time to close up shop! You got bandits on the way!"

The woman looks over at Lyn as she enters. "You're not from one of the other villages around here. Plus you have those weapons….who are you?"

"My name is Ly…" Lyndis quickly catches herself "err Link. Yeah, that's it. I'm Link, a mercenary."

"A mercenary named Link, is it? Wait. Do you mean to say you are the Link? The legendary hero of time who defeated Ganon and brought peace and prosperity to the land of Hyrule? That Link?"

Lyn blinks a few times in confusion. "…Yes?"

The woman's face changes from a look of suspicion to admiration. "Oh it's such an honor to meet you in person. My name is Fiora and I'm a huge fan of your exploits. Your heroics are actually what inspired me to become a general of Grado. Although, I always thought you would be taller in person. And less feminine"

"Oh…well you know legends, they're always getting so exaggerated these days."

Fiora nods her head. "True. Well, as you can see there are bandits in the area. I would stop them myself but I am unfortunately due back at the capital. Would you be willing to aid these villagers in my place?"

"Umm…"

"Is something the matter?"

"No! I'll help them! It's just … you're one of Grado's generals…why?"

"These are just ordinary people. They do not deserve to suffer because their leaders fight. One again, it was a pleasure to meet you Link. Please except this as payment.

Fiora heads off leaving behind a red gem in Lyn's hands.

"Well, that was weird." She says as the village woman besides her nods in agreement.

-------

"So you should barricade your doors and stay there till the threat is over," Lucius says politely as he explains the situation to another village.

"Please except this pure water as a small token." A man says.

"Thank you good sir," Lucius says turning to leave.

"Your welcome madam."

Lucius immediately stops. "Actually, I'm a guy."

The man snickers a bit. "Sure you are."

"No. Seriously, I am. Look, I'm wearing the robes of a priest and everything."

"Whatever you say, you crazy female cross dresser. Feel free to leave anytime you want."

A low growl escapes Lucius's lips as he stomps off muttering to himself. "Thou shall not kill, thou shall not kill…"

-------

Bone looks around in a panic. "Who are you people?"

Dorcas leaps forward with a strong ax swing, which Bone barely dodges. "I'm the one putting a stop to you scum."

"Sorry gramps but that ain't happening"

Bone gets a quick strike in causing Dorcas to yell in pain and back up a slight bit. At the same moment, a hatchet suddenly flies thought the air bouncing off the bandit.

"Father!"

"Hawkeye? Boy, what did I tell you? Get out of here now and don't worry about my safety!"

Hawkeye stares right back at him. "Do you really think I would run away while you fight Dad?" You taught me that fighter's fight for what is important to them. Therefore I shall not leave you behind."

"Hawkeye," Dorcas says a small smile forming. Fine. We'll cut our way out of here together!"

"Excuse me," Bone interrupts, "I hate to break up the warm family moment your having, but I got to kill you now."

Hawkeye throws out his hatchet again. However, unlike the last time Bone knocks it away with his axe.

"Ha. Not so easy when you're not attacking me from behind. So what are you going to do now you little brat?"

Not saying a word Hawkeye walks over, throws out his arm, grabs Bone by the throat and lifts him up into the air.

"Ah man, this is going to hurt."

A few miles away, Bazba is walking peacefully along a trail whistling a merry tune.

"Aggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

- Boom -

A small crater forms in front of him curtsey of Bone's crash landing.

"Yo Bone," Bazba says looking down, "How goes the plundering, man?"

"Not so well boss."

-------

"You saved my son," Dorcas says looking at the gathered group. "You have my thanks."

Lyn smiles back at him. "We're the good guys. It's what we do."

Marcus has a stern look on his face as he looks the man over. "Hold on a moment. Aren't you Dorcas? You use to fight for Renais, did you not?"

"You know this guy Marcus?"

"Yes your highness. He was a troop commander till about 10 years ago. When I was a young recruit, I would hear many great tales about him. The soliders would always refer to him as the Unstoppable Dork."

A smile forms on Lyndis as she resists the urge to start laughing. "Okay, I remember him now…"

"Master Dorcas, you know the danger that befalls our homeland. Can you lend your strength to Renais one more time?"

"I never liked that nickname," Dorcas mutters, "But besides that, I am retired now. Years ago, I spent my entire time fighting for my country never once getting a thank you from the nobles or a nice Christmas bonus. Then, when my wife fall ill and died, I realized what I had lost. I made a vow that day, that I would be a half decent father. Therefore, the only fighting I shall do will be to protect him. I have no regrets. I'm the boy's father."

A wave of nervous coughing comes over the group as they look back and forth at Dorcas and Hawkeye.

"Are you completely sure about that?" Rebecca asks.

"Of course! I'll admit, I may have neglected my dearest Natalie for several years, but I'm sure that she remained faithful during that time. Right?"

"Absolutely"

"Most definitely"

"The thought of anything other then that never crossed my mind"

"Father, you are being quite foolish about this decision," Hawkeye says finally speaking up.

"Hawkeye?"

"Just listen to me for a moment please. You claim that you do not wish to fight except for me; hence, you would prefer to avoid fighting at all. But by turning your back on this situation, you are just causing large problems in the fact that there will be more bandits and threats so long as this war and its conflicts continue. So, logically, your best option would be to join in this cause to severely reduce the number of fights you are trying to avoid in the first place"

"…"

"Besides, I know that I can help out! I'm the best fighter in all of Ide! I'll even fight with you right now to prove it!"

Dorcas begins to sweat at this thought. "Now son lets not do anything too rash. Sir Marcus, if these old bones of mine can still serve, I would like to join. My boy has grown up on me a bit. He is right. I should fight and I will."

"Dad," Hawkeye cries out grabbing his father in a big hug.

"Ahh...son…can't…breathe"

"Opps"

-------

Later that night Lyn stands by herself outside watching the stars. Her mind is not focused on the now, rather things that have occurred in days gone past.

"Eliwood"

Cue flashback sequence in 3, 2, 1…

- Flashback: Some time before now -

Inside one of the rooms of Castle Renais, two figures stand opposite one another. The first is Lyndis while the other is a man with short red hair looking to be a bit older then her.

"Are you ready to begin sister?" the man asks.

"Sure thing Eliwood"

Eliwood flashes a cheesy smile as he picks of a spear. "Okay, then. Now then makes sure you have a good grip on your sword. Spread your legs two feet apart and focus your weight on the front one. Now next…"

"Eliwood?" Lyn interrupts

"Yes?"

"You do remember that I'm giving you the fighting lesson, don't you?"

"Oh yeah. I kinda forgot." Eliwood says laughing a bit and scratching the back of his head.

Lyn shakes her head in disbelief. "It's kind of sad that you need your sister to help with your fight training"

"I'm not that bad."

"That's not what everyone else says"

"Well at least I'm not obsessed with violence like some other people."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I try to solve all my problems in a well mannered, civilized fashion. I only fight when someone ticks me off or I'm really bored."

"Or it's the weekend" Eliwood adds on with a grin.

A small look of anger forms on Lyn's face. "Okay, now it's on!" she yells picking up a sword and starting to chase after her brother.

-------

Lyn is broken out of her flashback as a brown haired youth collides with her.

"Sorry about that. Please beg my pardon."

"Hey!" Lyn calls out as the stranger disappears.

"Princess," Marcus says running up, "Are you all right?"

"Sure. Someone just bumped into me. I'm fine."

"Hmm? Your highness, where is your bracelet?"

Lyn looks down at her now empty wrist. "What? It's gone. That man must have stolen it."

"I'll find him!"

"Don't worry about it. Finding Eliwood is more important right now."

"No. We must get that bracelet back, regardless of the cost?"

"What cost?" Lyn say laughing a bit. "It's nothing but a cheap trinket. You'd be lucky to get 10 pieces of gold for it."

Marcus turns back to face her, a glare like no other on his face. "Now you listen here missy. That bracelet and very valuable and we are going to get it back right away! No matter how long it takes us or what the cost is! Am I making myself perfectly clear your highness!"

"…yes."

"Good. Then gather everyone up and so we can get going. We're wasting valuable time."

Who was that mysterious stranger?

What's the big deal about a cheap little bracelet?

Will Marcus's new tough guy attitude last until the next chapter?

Tune in next time to find out.

Same Fire Emblem Time!

Same Fire Emblem Channel!


	4. Chapter 3

Lyndis and company chase after the thief the thief that has stolen her bracelet, even though its estimated retail value is only $ 6.89. Their chase leads them into the mountains where Bazba's Bandits pillage away. Once again, the good guy syndrome kicks in and Lyn decides that they cannot ignore her countrymen's pleas for help. So with determination and a detailed map showing the secret bases of all criminals in the area, she sets off to find the thief's stronghold.

**Ch 3: The Most Totally Bogus Bandits of Borgo**

Lyn and the rest of the gang stand in the woods overlooking the nearby area.

"According to the local villagers, this area is where Bazba's Bandits base is located." Marcus states proudly. "Also, a few people claimed to have seen a person matching our bracelet thief's description in the vicinity."

Lyn, as well most of the rest of the group looks on impressed. "Nice work Marcus. You actually were able to gather all that information from the citizens?"

"Yes, your highness. Once, I explained the situation to the citizenry, they were more then willing to lend aid."

At this, Lowen's eyes blink hidden underneath his messy green hair. "But Sir Marcus, I thought you had to bribe some of…"

Marcus quickly clamps his hand over his ward's mouth. "Yup, perfectly willing"

Lyn sighs as she looks over the area. "All of this is just hard to take in. The bandits steal everything in sight. Villages are burned to the ground. Renais plunges further into savagery. Oh and of course there's the fact that you dragged all of us here for just a stupid little bracelet!"

Marcus looks ready to protest before they are interrupted.

"Uh…Hello?"

A young woman with red hair and the cloths and tools of an archer runs up to them.

"Hey, you guys are a mercenary troop, right?"

"Why do you ask?" Lyn replies, a trace of suspicion on her voice.

"Well, the thing is," the young women starts before tears immediately begin to form and she starts sobbing, "P-p-please you have got to help Matthew. You must! I tried to tell him that it was too dangerous but he's an idiot and wouldn't listen to me!"

Lyn places a reassuring arm on the archer. "Just try to calm down. Everything will be alright. Now, start at the beginning and go slowly."

"Okay…Sniff. I'm Leila. I'm from err well use to be from a town called Lark. It's gone now."

"Gone? What do you mean gone?"

"Bazba's Bandits burned it down. Only me and Matthew escape. The other villages…the bandits attacked them and…even the cute little puppy dogs…sniff."

"No! Not the cute little puppy dogs!" Wallace shouts shaking a fist into the air. "Curse you vile fiends!"

"So what are you doing here Leila?" Hawkeye quickly asks.

"Well …the bandits have a base somewhere up here. That's where Matthew uh…Matthew he's my uh well…we've known each other since we are kids and well…you know…"

"No we don't" Marcus mutters completely seriously.

Lyn and Rebecca both send glares over to the paladin helping him get the message.

"Never mind"

"Matthew went there to steal something back the bandits took from me. If I lost Matthew too…I don't know…I…I'll…Sniff"

Lyn holds up her hands. "Time out. Please don't start to cry. Don't worry. We'll go find your friend and make sure he's not harmed."

"…Really?"

"Of course"

Leila immediately stops sobbing, straightening up while the tears that were just running down her face disappear as by magic. "Thank you. Your help will be greatly appreciated. Umm I don't actually have any money with me but I'm sure I can figure out a way to be of assistance. Bazba's base is not much further from here so allow me to lead the way."

Everyone blinks at the sudden change in personality before shrugging and starting to follow along. As they walk, Lyn looks over at Marcus.

"Don't you usually object by now saying we shouldn't be taking these extra risks?"

"Yes. But would it honestly do any good?"

"You're starting to catch on Marcus."

Inside a nearby somewhat secret base…

"Okay dudes, listen up."

Bazba stands at attention looking over the various fighters, archers, and other random thugs.

"Now then, I'm sure you all know why I called this meeting."

One of his men speaks up, "Your note said something about planning a surprise birthday party for your mom"

"Yeah, well…the note's a liar. No, actually it appears like we might be getting some intruders soon. And not the cool type, these are the ones who want to ruin all our fun."

The thugs begin to talk and murmur with one another.

"Chill for a sec guys." Bazba says speaking up. "We don't have to worry because I've come up with this totally awesome plan. Here it is: if you see anybody you don't recognize, kill them."

The gang members all nod their heads in agreement. Suddenly one of the men pulls out a dagger and stabs a nearby archer in the back.

"I got one boss!"

Bazba winces as the archer dies. "Err...actually that was Mark. He just started here yesterday. But, good show of effort man. Now then, let's get out there and show everyone why Bazba's Bandits are the coolest bandits ever!"

"Yeah!"

Outside the base…

"Bazba's Secret Base. Only awesome people allowed" Rebecca says reading the sign posted there. "I think this might be the place."

"Indeed" Marcus says before turning to face Leila. "So tell me miss, what skills do you process?"

"Well," Leila starts off slowly, "My grandfather taught me how to use a bow when I was a little girl and I'm a fairly decent shot. Also, people keep telling me I'm really good at masking my emotions to the point that I can manipulate people and would probably make a really effective spy. Oh…of course I've never actually tried any of that stuff before."

"I see. Well then, you should remain behind and protect the princess."

"Ah…okay."

Three seconds later, Leila moves off into the base by herself.

-------

A brown haired youth hums pleasantly emerging from a set of stairs that don't seem to actually go anywhere. He quickly makes his way towards a locked door.

"Here we go. These bandits are too easy to fool. Oh well, guess I should start with these chests here. Money, money, money…Money!"

Pulling out his handy dandy all purpose Acme lock pick set, Matthew quickly jimmies open the door and heads towards the treasure.

-------

"Did you hear something Wallace?" Lucius asks.

"What are you talking about? I didn't hear anything."

"I could have sworn I heard a voice saying something about money. Was it just in my head?"

Wallace shrugs. "Maybe you're just tired from working so hard."

"No, I'm fine. Are you sure that your ears are working okay?"

"Blast it! My ears are in peak physical condition! You must just be going senile."

"I hope not," Lucius says gulping a bit.

-------

"Are you ready for some more training son?" Dorcas says looking up at his son.

Hawkeye nods and replies "Of course father. Please share with me more of your combat wisdom."

"That's my boy. Now then this," he says indicating a cracked wall, "is a cracked wall. By using our weapons we can break through it and create a shortcut. Allow me to demonstrate."

Dorcas takes a deep breathe before stepping back and throwing his axe forward into the wall. The strike causes the crack to widen a small bit.

"See? Now you give it a shot son."

"Sure thing dad."

Hawkeye takes a step a back and then tosses his hatchet as hard as he can. The small axe zooms forward before striking into a section of wall right next to the crack.

"We're going to have to work on your aim boy. Try again"

Hawkeye walks over to retrieve his hatchet. As he pulls it out the section it's attached to collapses into a pile of rubble. On the other side the brigand gasps in shock dropping the newspaper he was reading and fumbling for his weapon.

"That works too" Dorcas says, also in a state of disbelief.

-------

"Oh, an iron lance" Matthew grins plucking the item up out of the chest and putting it next to the other loot he has found. "Now, what's next on the bandits shopping network?"

Matthew moves over ready to open the third chest just as a figure leaps in front of him.

"Not so fast!" he yells swinging an axe forward.

Matthew calmly ducks the blow before looking at the figure and then blinking in shock.

"Bone?"

"Yeah" The bandit replies getting ready to swing again.

"You can't be here. You're the boss of the last chapter. You should have died."

"Hey, I wasn't actually killed. I was just thrown a very long distance. Besides how would you know anyway? You didn't show up till the end of that chapter!"

"Good point" Matthew pauses in thought. "How about this? I was there but I was hiding and secretly spying on everything."

"Yeah, I suppose that could work"

The two get ready to resume fighting…

"Matthew?"

Matthew turns around missing another axe swing.

"Leila? What are you doing here! I told you to wait, didn't I?"

Leila nods her head. "Yes, but I couldn't and it's too dangerous. C'mon, let's go home."

"Yo! Remember me? The bad guy that's about to attack you?" Bone calls out.

"Hate to break it to yeah sweetie, but our home is nothing but a pile of timber. Anyway, I could rob this place in a snap but a clumsy girl like you would just slow me to. So, just leave everything to me."

An annoyed look begins to form on Leila's face. "Clumsy…I'm clumsy…"

"Why do people keep having conversations and ignoring me?" The previous boss whines.

"Look this is foolish. Just stay by my side and we'll sort things out later."

"Fine"

"Took you long enough" Bone mutters raising his axe.

Leila quickly pulls out an arrow and notches it into her bow. She quickly sends it flying forward. The arrow barley misses Bone, bounces off the chest into a wall before ricocheting up into the ceiling, striking back down into a torch before bouncing again out of sight.

"Ha. You missed. So what are you going to do now?"

Matthew calmly pulls out his sword and stabs him in the gut.

"What? Oh, not again."

-----

"Yo dudes and dudettes. I'm the main head honcho of Bazba's Bandits and I'm called Bazba. I hope you all like enjoy yourselves your lives because there about to have a major wipe-out."

Lyn groans and holds a hand to her aching head. "Please don't tell me you talk like that all the time"

"Of course little lady. After all, I am the epitome of ultimate megacooliness"

"That's not even a word! Oh, lets just all attack him at once and get this over with"

And that they do. Hawkeye and Rebecca move in tossing hatchet and javelins respectfully. At the same time Marcus, Lowen, and Lyn charge forward surrounding Bazba and slashing at him with their swords. After a few minutes they let up their assault only to see Bazba standing there still alive.

"Yeah! Whose the man?"

- Thwoosh -

An arrow flies into the room and goes off the floor, a wall, Lowen's sword, a chandelier, and another wall before landing straight into Bazba's back.

"……Bummer" the bandit leader manages to get out before collapsing.

Everyone looks back to see Matthew and Leila with them.

"Nice shot"

-----

"Matthew…" Leila starts.

"What now?" Matthew asks a cheerful smile on his face. "I told you I handle this place on my own. And I got plenty of loot to show for it. See?"

The girl forms another face looking like she is about to cry again. "I was worried…"

"Oh no," Matthew says, a look of dread on his face, "Stop! Please don't start crying! I'm sorry."

"Aaagg...sniff… no more being dumb…and dangerous stuff by yourself?"

"Fine I will. Anyway, look what I got for yeah!"

"Hmm…"

"I got your mirror back," he says holding up the item. "You know the one that belonged to your mom and had you all worked up. I said I would get it back from the thugs and that's what I did. Guaranteed results from yours truly."

The sobs quickly halt. "You mean the antique mirror with silver lining and jewels encrusted on the back? That mirror?"

"Yup"

"Matthew, you the best." The archer says giving him a big hug.

"While this is a very lovely Disney moment," Marcus says suddenly speaking up, "I think you should give back Princess Lyndis's bracelet now"

"Bracelet? Sorry, I don't think I have one of those. And speaking of which, we really must be going."

Matthew tries to move away but Marcus quickly grabs him by his collar.

"Whoa there buddy! Your nice and all, but I'm not interested in guys."

A menacing growl comes from the paladin. "The bracelet or my blade. Your choice."

"Alright, alright" Matthew says pulling himself free, "Now lets see here…"

The thief begins to empty out his pockets tossing out various objects. Some coins, a knife, another set of lock picks, a fork, a diary…

"Hey, that's mine!" Rebecca shouts, quickly picking it up.

A set of house keys, a coupon book, a red gem, a couple of candlesticks, a rug, a sandwich, an issue of Senior Paladin Monthly…

Marcus grumbles as he takes back his magazine.

"Here it is," Matthew says holding up one bracelet.

Marcus quickly snatches the bracelet out of the thief's hand. "Tell me boy, do you really care for this girl? If so, you must quit this dark road that you have set yourself upon."

"If by dark road you mean great carefree life where I can do whatever I want and get to hang around with a cute babe all the time, then I think I might pass."

Leila forms a small smirk at this but quickly hides it.

"We are leaving. Don't expect to be rescued again. Farewell"

"Hold on a sec." Mathew says cutting Marcus off. "You should let us come with you."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, for starters we're poor homeless war orphans. You guys are mercenaries and I can be real handy to have around. Plus, there's also Leila so you would be getting two hardworking and honest people. Okay, maybe one honest person."

Marcus sighs, "I truly want to say no but knowing the princess she'll just say yes anyway. However, let me make something very clear. Our duty is a grave one so we have no time to spend babysitting you."

"That's fine with us. Just wait. I promise you won't regret this decision."

"I already do."

"You know, I always use to think that this was some tacky gift" Lyn says as she slips the bracelet back on her hand, "Something dad gave to both me and Eliwood so he wouldn't have to waste time finding a better birthday present for us. Now, with how crazy you've been going on, I'm starting to think otherwise"

Marcus lowers his head. "Forgive me you highness. But those two bracelets are important to the future of Renais itself. You must make sure to never lose them."

"That important huh? And you're still not going to tell me why, are you?"

"I apologize. When the time is right, I shall inform you of everything."

"Very well, I trust you Marcus" Lyn says forming a smile as they set out. "Besides, if you don't I'll just demote you down to a janitor or something."

"Oi"

----------

Miles away at the castle fortress of Grado aka the bad guy's home…

Three figures, two on horseback and one atop a wyvern stand side by side waiting the arrival of their ruler. Their stance and clothing clearly identifies them as having the rank of general. The first is Fiora…well okay we don't actually know what her last name is. Beside her is Rath, a tall man with green hair and a permanent serious look attached to his face. And finally on the other horse is a muscular man with a white bandanna on his head currently…snoring.

"General Dart" Fiora says softly shaking the figure.

Dart moves and mutter a bit before resuming his nap.

"Wake up Dart!"

Dart snaps up wide awake. "What's going on" he says yawning and looking around. "Oh hey Fiora, your back. How's the fighting in Renais going?"

"Very well…if you don't mind chaos, death, destruction, and thieves and bandits running rampant while the cries of the people go unanswered."

"I hear yeah. This situation will only worsen if nothing is done. And old Uther has been a bit off his rocker recently. Maybe, just this one, I should take the lead"

Rath finally decides to speak. "The king is not being himself. He breaks the long held peace treaties we had with Renais. Then, he starts a full fledged invasion when he has been a pacifist his entire life."

"Yeah," Dart agrees. "So didn't see that one coming"

"Also, have you noticed the latest promotions? They are going to all the creepy and weird soldiers, not the ones who have Grado's best interests. I feel like this might just be a prelude to an even greater war"

"Rath, it doesn't matter what we think of the situation," Fiora says, "We are servants of Grado and we cannot question our lord's intention."

"I know that Fiora but…"

"Shut up both of you!" Dart says sharply. "The boss is here"

Emperor Uther, a blue haired man in heavy armour walks in, following closely by another individual in shaman like robes, looking very similar to the lord but a few years younger.

"Greetings, my loyal vessels. Before we begin, I would like to make clear that everything I say will be my own words and will not be influenced or manipulated in any way by my son Hector standing off to side here. Say hello Hector."

"Dance puppets. Dance." Hector mutters underneath his breath as he nods at the three.

"Now before we begin, are there any questions?"

Dart quickly raises his hand. "Yeah, I got one. You keep referring to Hector as your son. But, I could've sworn that he was your brother. What's up with that?"

"Ah, yes. A simple explanation exists to your question. You see, I process a bit of Oedipus complex. Therefore, some time ago, I murdered my father and married my mother, which basically makes Hector both my son and my bother. Any other questions?"

Dart, Rath, and Fiora quickly shake their heads no.

"Very well." Uther pauses a bit before continuing. "In times of crisis, leaders such as myself sometimes have to make tough decisions…"

"You're firing us?" Rath yells

"Not firing. More like demoting and replacing you with three new and improved servants. Why, here they are now."

Three new figures, a bishop, a hero, and a wyvern knight step into the throne room.

"These three are much better then you guys. With their added strength to my generals, we shall easily conquer all the land. Understand?"

The bishop steps forward. "Heh heh heh…I am Renault, given the title of Blood Baron by our lord. I may be a newcomer but soon my skill and talent will be recognised and I won't be considered a minor insignificant character. Mwhahahahahahaha."

"That's nice…" Dart says.

"So, I'm Geitz" the hero says speaking up, "I am a mercenary and I fought in the desert. Oh yeah, according to this name tag, I'm suppose to be called Tiger Eye. Honestly, I don't even know why I'm here. I was just wandering around…hey you're a cute lass"

Fiora chooses to ignore the comment.

"So we meet again," Karel says. "I am Karel better known as the moonstone, even if I should be the one with the word blood in his title. My spear and I shall destroy anyone in our path so you better not cross me, else you will have to quench my thrist for blood and death."

"Karel…you psycho!"

Fiora lets out a moan "Not this guy,"

"You know him too?" Rath whispers.

"Worse. I use to date him in high school."

"Enough" Uther yells breaking up the arguments. "Fiora, Geitz, you shall bring me Frelia."

"Yes, sire"

"Yeah, whatever"

"Renault, Dart, you shall guard the capital. You shall receive further instructions whenever I feel like it."

"As you command"

"Mwhahahahahahaha"

"What about me?" Karel quickly asks.

Uther looks at him and Rath "You two shall hunt down the siblings of Renais. Find them and bring them to me."

"Do you want them alive, somewhat alive, or their bodies in multiple pieces?"

"Whichever you prefer"

"Ha ha…of course"

Rath chooses to not to say anything, instead changing back into his silent hardcore serious mode.

Chapter ends………now.


	5. Chapter 4

With her bracelet now recovered, the Renais princess sets off with renewed determination. Appearing once more on the cool looking map screen, she sets out with her small band of followers…wait can ten people really be considered a small group? I mean that number is larger then most RPG games. Passing through the weirdly named forest of Xa'ha, they get closer to the Grado border. Also, what is with this map? Is every place on the continent accessible by traveling in a straight line? Anyway, seeing no sign of enemy soldiers, Lyndis begins to worry less, believing that maybe things are starting to look up. Yeah, I think we all know how likely that is.

**Chapter 4: Ancient Horrors…Who you goanna call? **

The group emerges from the forest with Marcus and Lyn at the head of them.

"We are approaching Serafew, the border between Renais and Grado," Marcus says. "Once we cross there, we will be in Grado territory. Renvall won't be much further."

"That's assuming we don't run into any more mishaps"

Matthew forms a grin. "Place your bets people! How many more times are we going to get attacked?"

Lyn looks back to say something to the thief, but just then she is distracted by a nearby sight.

"Hey! Look over there!"

The gathered group turns their attention towards some nearby villages. There a large group of 'things' moving around. The majority of them are humanoid shaped figures with sharps claws and piles of rotten flesh hanging off of them. Alongside with them are some large floating eyeballs and a few skeletons wearing armor and holding on to swords and shields.

"What are those things? Are they even human?" Lyn asks confused. "Has anyone else ever seen anything like them?"

"Nope"

"Afraid not"

"Don't think so"

"I saw something similar in a dream after eating some bad stew."

Marcus rubs his chin in thought. "There is only one simple logical explanation for this."

Everyone turns and looks at him.

"Obviously they are people dressed up in costumes!"

Everyone blinks and looks back at the creatures.

"Costumes?" Lyn asks. "But isn't Halloween still over a week away"

"Well, these children must be very eager for their candy."

Lyn slowly nods her head at this. "I guess that makes sense. Hmm, I wonder what I should dress up as this year. Any suggestions?

"A fairy"

"What about Xena, warrior princess?"

"Perhaps you should go as swordswomen from the plains."

"Yeah right. Like anyone would think that I'm one of those."

Inside a nearby village…

People scream in terror as a zombie slowly moves toward the homes, its arms outstretched.

"Grahh blahh rahhh mahh oogg"

Translation: "Trick or treat?"

"Get back…you vile monster" One villager says as he picks up a rock and throws it causing it to bounce off the zombie.

"Oww…grr ahh mog"

Translation: "Ow…Hey, these guys are attacking us! Brothers, we must defend ourselves!"

As the monsters move in, two people overlook the scene. One is a purple haired youth wearing the clothes of a monk while the other is a blue haired girl.

"What have we done to deserve such a fate? How can these abominations walk amongst us when the Sacred Stones are suppose to be protecting us?

The blue haired girl says nothing.

"Farina, you should stay here in the village where it is safer."

"Those are renvanants aren't they?" Farina says finally speaking up. "They were the soldiers for the Demon King back in the days of darkness. The Big Book of Creatures that are not Suppose to Exist mentions them in chapter 4, section 8, paragraph 15."

"You know of them?" the monk, Erk, asks.

Farina looks a bit annoyed before lightly slapping the back of Erk's head. "Of course I do stupid. I am after all a prodigy businesswoman. I read and remember anything that might be useful in gaining more gold and a higher profit. According to the book, renvanants attack people with their razor sharp claws tearing open their skin sending blood flying and ripping out all the major organs. Sounds really painful, doesn't it?"

"Err yeah it does…" Erk says slowly, "Anyway, I need to go save some travelers outside. Stay here in the village where it's safer."

"Very well. That's perfectly fine with me"

Farina watches as Erk heads out of the village.

"My magic is far more effective then any monster's claws. It can easily pierce the strongest hides and the toughest armor. Yes, if this village were to be attacked, I am quite sure that I could defend it……for a small fee of course.

---FE---

"Maybe you should dress up as a ninja turtle"

"A ninja what?"

"Travelers, you must listen to me!" Erk shouts interrupting the group's debate as he runs up to them. "The forest is dangerous! Head south and get away before the fiends get you."

Lyn looks at the monk. "Okay, two questions. First, who are you? And second, what fiends are you talking about?"

"My name is Erk. The temple has assigned me the task of cleansing the area of these things. Event though there a large number of them and I am completely by myself. And to answer your second question, I am talking about these ancient fiends that served the Demon King from long ago. How could you people not have noticed them?"

Dorcas blinks in confusion. "Hold on. Your saying that those people are not actually kids out trick or treating?"

"…No. Who came up with that dumb idea?"

Everyone turns to look at the only paladin in the group.

"In my defense, we only saw them from a distance." Marcus says, "Your Highness, watch out! Something approaches!"

One of the eyeball creatures heads towards them creepily staring.

Erk starts walking towards the Mogall. "Allow me to take care of this. Evil vein of darkness! May the blessed light drive you from this land! Fire…err I mean Lightning!"

Erk prays for a moment before a blast of light comes out at the Mogall critically hitting and obliterating him.

"The magic that Erk uses cannot be stopped by physical defense. However magic resistance can affect the damage it does."

"Yes, that's true" Erk says looking around. "Umm…who said that?"

"Who, me? I'm the tutorial. Here to give you informative advice about how to do every single thing, no matter how blatantly obvious it is."

"Okay," Leila says, "But why haven't you shown up before?"

"Well I would have been here sooner except I needed to my contract renewed first."

Lyn claps her hands together. "That's nice and all Mr. Tutorial. However, we're doing fine on our own so you can just head on out now."

"Are you sure? I have a lot of information…"

"No thank you. Have a nice day now"

"You guys are just a bunch of big meanies. I'm going home now."

Lyn sighs a bit. "Since that's now taken care of, Erk these monsters. Are they attacking the people?"

"Worse," the young monk announces gravely, "Some of the fiends are dancing to Michael Jackson's Thriller"

A collective gasp of horror comes from the group.

"There's no way we are going to stand for that. Let's go gang!"

Erk quickly speaks up. "Very well. I have a companion in the southern village. If any of you can get there quickly, I ask that you look out for her safety.

---FE---

"There is an old snag south of here" the villager says.

"Is that so?" Hawkeye replies looking back at him.

"Yes. It would make a handy bridge if you knocked it down."

"Is that so?"

"All it would take is a few whacks with a weapon to do it."

"Is that so?"

The man looks at Hawkeye. "Your one of those special need kids, right?"

---FE---

It doesn't take long before the battle begins to heat up. Lyn enters into a sword duel with one of the bonewalkers. Rebecca flies through the air dodging Mogall eye blasts while Wallace wrestles with a revenant managing to rip off one of his arms. Lowen charges, Matthew steals and Lucius heals everyone while Marcus stands around attempting to look cool. And from an overhead ledge, three people watch the events with great interest.

"Oh my," A pink haired women with pigtails atop a horse cries out. "Those people are being attacked by the forces of evil"

A brown haired man with a large axe looks down in excitement. "Hey, your right! So…which one of those guys are evil?"

"The undead ones Bartre" the third member, a well dressed man with purple hair and a scar across his right eye, says.

"There is no way I can allow this!" the troubadour declares loudly, "Come! We must charge down these cliffs and put a stop to these malevolence monstrosities!"

"Nnng. Hard words make my head hurt!"

The purple haired man ignores Bartre's plight. "If we charge down those cliffs there will only be the risk of us falling to our deaths."

"Oh, silly Legault" The girl laughs, "You misunderstood me. When I said we, I meant that you two would be carrying me and my horse down the cliff. Therefore, I shall not be in any danger at all."

Legault quickly begins to think, "You know…I remember hearing about a shoe sale over on the nearby trail. If we were to take that route, we could make a quick stop there."

The troubadour halts, her pig tails swishing as she turns quickly around. "Shoe sale? Well…one must always be equipped with the proper footwear when they are battling pure evil. Come! First the shoes, then we'll destroy these monsters!"

"Ha ha ha! Right you are, Lady Serra!"

Legault slowly follows along.

---FE---

Erk runs back into the village panting out of breath. "Farina, I have good news. Help has arrived."

Once again Farina is silent; saying nothing as she critically looks Erk over.

"Farina?"

"You flesh doesn't show any signs of bite marks or infection. I guess you are not a revenant after all."

"Well, I should hope not!"

Disappointment appears on Farina's face. "That's too bad. I was hoping I could sell you to some researchers or maybe a carnival."

"What?"

"You've obviously come back because you need my help. Don't worry. These creatures are quite simply no match for my superior magic skills."

Erk is silent at first as the two leave the village. "Remind again why we are friends."

---FE---

"So you're the big bad zombie boss" Lyn holds out her sword looking at the large undead creature in front of her.

"Glaa" The zombie yells as he swipes his clawed hand forward.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Come on and attack me."

"I don't think he can," Leila says pointing towards the entombed's legs.

Lyn follows the archer's gaze towards the creature's feet. Or rather foot, as it does not have one on the right leg. As for the other one, it is twisted at a freakish unworkable angle.

"I don't think he can move from that spot" she finally says.

"It looks that way."

"Would it be wrong to take advantage of this?"

"Possibly," Marcus says, "However, there are no set rules of engagement for facing things that are already dead"

"Time is money," Farina adds on.

"Good point," Lyn says, "Everyone, ready, aim…"

The entombed looks around nervously as he is suddenly surrounded on all sides.

"Fire!"

"Glok bog" it mutters as a storm of arrows, axes, javelins, lighting and fireballs come flying at him.

Translation: "Uh Oh"

---FE---

"All the creatures have been slain, princess" Marcus reports. "Still, we should burn their bodies to be on the safe side."

Lowen smiles at this. "Hey, we can have a weenie roast."

Lyn shakes her head in disbelief "I still can't believe that we are fighting things that were supposed to be only myths and legends."

"Indeed. Also, it is said that these revenants were suppose to be the least of the dark creatures. We cannot take this new enemy lightly."

"Your paladin is right for once," Farina says walking up to the pair. "There are much worse then just revenants and the entombed. Let's see now, there are bonewalkers, mauthe dogs, gargoyles, mimes, baels…Why any of these ancient creatures might be up and kicking. Yes, there is trouble ahead. Even my amazing skill might not be enough to stop it."

Erk looks up to the heavens. "Divine Lights, is this a sign of dark days to come?"

Marcus looks over at Lyn. "Princess, maybe we should…"

"We're not retreating Marcus"

"You know," Farina starts, "My vast knowledge and skill in magic would be a great benefit to your cause. And you could get both the services of both me and Erk here for only the one time low cost down payment of 2000 gold."

An annoyed look forms on Erk's face as he begins to swing his arms around. "Wait a second! Why are you including me?"

Farina simply replies. "The temple owes me a few favors. I am quite sure that I can convince them to loan you out to me for a little while."

"I don't believe this," the monk mutters

Lyndis looks over at Farina. "I would love to have you join us. But sadly none of us have that kind of money. Well except maybe…"

A few feet away Matthew is humming peacefully. He stops when he suddenly feels several sets of eyes staring at him.

"What's up?" he asks a bit nervously.

"Fork over the loot Matthew"

The thief looks ready to protest but stops when Lyn pulls out her sword. Slowly he reaches into his clothes and pulls out a large shake filled with money and other valuables. Reluctantly he hands it over to the mage.

"A pleasure doing business with you" Farina says happily.

Matthew looks about ready to cry. "My ill gotten goods…"

Leila walks over and lays a comforting arm on the thief's back. Unfortunately, their bonding moment is cut short as a pink haired girl on horseback bursts into the clearing startling everyone. Bartre and Legault arrive behind her, their arms full of several shopping bags.

"Foul creatures beware! I Serra, bestow upon you the honor of being slain by my beautiful hands!"

Everyone is at a loss for words as Serra looks around tightly clutching her staff in excitement. After a moment she looks at Lyn confused.

"What happen to all the monsters?" she asks.

"Well, we just killed them…"

"What?" Serra cries out pouting a bit. "But, I came all the way out here to show everyone the unbelievable splendor of my might. It's not fair."

Bartre says sadly, "Yeah, it's a real shame"

"Just like, how you keep dragging us around everywhere," Legault adds on quietly.

"I hate to interrupt," Lyn says kindly, "But who in the world are you?"

"Well since you ask, let me properly introduce myself." The troubadour takes a deep breath. "I am the shining perfection of light of glory, the pure model of grace, serenity, and beauty, the warrior of the sacred realm of Rausten, beloved by all her citizens for I am…"

"Oi," Bartre interrupts, "Aren't you suppose to have some sort of secret name thingy?"

Serra looks back at the berserker. "Oh yes, your right. Sometimes I just get so careless when talking about myself. Now, I must ride off anonymously into the glowing sunset. Oh, it is so romantic."

"It's the middle of the day," Lyn argues.

Serra ignores this comment. "Farewell and good tidings strangers. May you one day be graced by my charming presence again. Come, Bartre! Legault! We ride!"

"Let's go Legault!" Bartre cries out racing after the girl.

"Such fun," the rouge says walking after them.

Lyn and her companions watch as the small group leaves.

"Anyway else find that really weird?" the princess asks when they are out of sight.

Various people raise their hands while Erk clutches his arms around his sides shivering violently. "I sense a great deal of darkness and evil in that girl"

"…Oh well. Let's go see if we can find some candy."


	6. Chapter 5

Well good golly. Things sure did get interesting last time when Princess Lyndis and the gang encounter some real life monsters. Man, they were really scary. But luckily they were able to fight them off and save the day. Yay! So now they happily continue on their way towards a new town trying to find Lyn's brother. What new super cool adventures will the group find there? And will they make some more neato new best friends? There's only one way to find out folks.

**Chapter 5: Go Go Empire Extending Reach Arm**

A man walks down a lone alleyway, his boots hitting the stone pavement the only sound in the area. Attached to his side is a Killing Edge. The sword identifies him as a myrmidon and also warns other people to keep their distance. Garbed fully in dark cloths, with a serious expression on his face, a few strands of red hair peer out from underneath a weird hat, looking like it would be more suited for a pirate.

As the man emerges suddenly from the alleyway, he suddenly stops. Before him resides a large building that catches his eye. He raises his hat a bit to get a better look. The structure is arena like, due to the fact that it is an arena. Pulling a gold coin out of his pocket, the swordsman begins to twirl it in his hand as he finally opens his mouth to speak.

"…gambling"

"_Welcome to Serafew City. What kind of city is Serafew? It is a city that never sleeps. A person can wander down an alley in Serafew City and disappear forever. People come here all the time for just that reason. Some do it to forget about the past. Others to find action or redemption. And then there are ones who just want to have some fun and bet a few gold pieces."_

"I...ha...have…to keep…ha…on going."

A young woman runs through the streets as fast as possible. A mend staff clutched in her hands and white robes shows her to be a cleric in origin. Purple hair frazzled wildly, and eyes full of fear, she doesn't think about stopping for a second. So intent on getting away, she fails to see the figure in front of her until it is too late.

"Aggh" the cleric cries out as she slams into the swordsman. She stumbles a bit as she attempts to regain her footing. "P-pardon me…aggh a man!" she cries out.

The man stands there unfazed, just staring at her with a creepy evil looking smile.

"Oh I'm so sorry. Please forgive me…I really must be going. Good day to you."

The cleric runs off, twice as fast as before. The man watches her go as the tiniest of invisible smiles appears on his face.

"…cute"

"_People run in Serafew City. They run because of the dark secrets that they know. Secrets exist in this town like freshly baked cookies; too hot to touch and yet too tasty to resist. Fear consumes the girl. She knows too much so she keeps on running. Of course, an evil kingdom bent on world conquest doesn't help things." _

A little ways north, general Rath stands before a powerful looking knight.

"Captain Seer, I bring orders from his majesty. Rumour has it that princess Lyndis is making her way to Grado. You are to find her and detain her immediately."

"Sir, Yes sir!" Seer says quickly saluting to Rath.

"One more thing, a traitor has fled from Grado castle. Our reports indicting that she is hiding somewhere here in Serafew. Do whatever it takes to find her. Leave no stone unturned."

"Yes, Sir General Rath. If she resists, do we have permission to use lethal force?"

Rath is slow to respond. "Yes," he finally says. "Permission granted"

"Understand sir! Also, will I be getting paid overtime for my work sir?"

"No"

"…That is really lousy and cheap sir! Nevertheless, I shall make the traitor to the Grado empire pay with their blood"

"Just make sure don't you don't mess up. That is all"

"Yes sir!" Seer calls out with another salute before stomping off.

As Seer leaves, another wyvern rider with green and white hair steps forward.

"Such loyalty to the crown," Rath mutters out loud in thought. "If only I could be that stupid and naïve to our emperor's current actions."

"Is something the matter brother?" the newcomer asks.

"No…its nothing. Come Heath. Let's go. We ride back to the fortress northeast of here.

"Okay"

The two quickly take to the skies.

"_The only laws that exist in Serafew city are the laws of man. Survival of the fittest. Eat or be eaten. Money and greed work from the shadows, the secret puppet masters of it all. This is what kind of city it is, the kind your mother always told you not to go to. My kind of…"_

"Umm Matthew?" Leila asks, a look of confusion on her face, "Why are you talking like that?"

Matthew stops his speech as he looks over at the archer in the afternoon sun. "Ah, Leila! You just ruined the dramatic mood that I was setting up."

"Oh…I didn't mean to sniff…"

"No wait, I didn't mean it! You don't have to cry!"

At the head of the group Lyn sadly overlooks the town. "It's been so long since I've last been here. Eliwood and I would always pass through this place on our way to Grado. This place use to be filled with joy. There were no walls dividing borders or soldiers standing guard. This town was a symbol of the trust between our nations. Well that and our collective gambling addictions."

"And now like everything else, Grado now has it under their control." Marcus says looking over a map. "Your highness this place doesn't seem too heavily guarded. If we could remain unnoticed, we might be able to slip by the western gate."

"Nice plan Marcus, but I think you're overlooking one key detail"

"What's that?"

Lyn turns and points back where the other ten members of their party have all started arguing loudly and fighting with one another.

Marcus slams his forehead in annoyance. "Oh, right. Those people. Do we really need to keep them around?"

"Pardon me, may I ask you a question?" a stranger calls out interrupting the train of thought.

Lyn and Marcus turn to see a fairly attractive man in robes with silver hair. A book held at his side, he politely bows at the two.

"What is it?"

"I'm looking for someone. Have you seen a girl with green hair?"

"I have green hair," Lyn replies pointing to her head.

"No, no. I mean someone a bit younger"

"Oh…hey Rebecca?"

"Yes, your highness?" the Pegasus knight comes forward.

"Err; actually I'm looking for a lighter shade of green hair"

"Lowen?"

"I said a girl!" the stranger yells a bit upset.

"Well with that armour on and hair covering up most of his face…"

Lowen quickly argues. "Hey, I am a guy! Besides if anyone here is feminine, it's our so called priest."

"I suggest that you reconsider your statement," Lucius states calmly although his face is one of pure rage. "Unless you want me to go biblical on you!"

Lyn ignores the bickering, her focus on the stranger. "Look buddy, every colour of skittles is a hair colour around these parts. You're going to have to be a bit more specific."

"I suppose you are right" The man pauses in thought. "The girl I'm looking for also has dragon wings on her back. Does that help?"

"Dragon wings?" Lyn asks, not quite sure she heard correctly. "No, we haven't seen anyone like that"

"Hmm…Very well. Thank you" the man says leaving.

"There was something odd about him" Lyn says.

"Yes," Marcus agrees. "He did have quite an odd way of trying to pick up a date."

"Hey over there!"

"Don't let her away!"

"Stop her!"

The whole group stops at the sound of the voices.

"Trouble?" Lyn asks.

"Trouble" everyone else agrees.

---FE---

"Traitor Florina" one of the soldiers says as he and few other guards head towards the cleric in the center of town. "Surrender peacefully. Come quietly, and you may have a chance to plead your case to the emperor."

"R-really?" Florina asks nervously.

"No. Probably not. I was just saying that to comfort you."

"Wait, you have to listen to me. The emperor is not himself. You must be able to realize that!"

"Sorry toots but we're generic soldiers. We only know how eat, be lazy, and follow the most basic of instructions."

Florina slowly steps back a few feet. "Would it help if I apologized a lot?"

"It would be nice. However, I'm afraid we still have to execute you know."

"Wait, you're a traitor to Grado?"

"Ah," Florina cries shocked that Lyn is right beside her.

The princess looks at the cleric. "Are you alright?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm from Renais. Why are these soldiers after you?"

"You're from Renais? Oh! Please, I have something very important to tell you It's about Grado…"

"Hold that thought." Lyn says looking at the large number of soldiers coming this way. "Alright guys. It's time to…oh you all know the drill by now."

---FE---

The swordsman from early steps out of the arena looking even more disgruntled then earlier.

"Hey you! Mercenary!" a solider yells out. "What do you think your doing in that arena? Get back to work!"

He looks over the solider but doesn't bother to respond. This just makes the solider madder.

"What's your name buddy?"

"…Jaffar"

"Yeah well you better start shaping up. I'm watching you, yeah filthy sellsword. Don't forget that you can be replaced in a second."

- Swoosh -

In the blink of an eye, Jaffar has his sword out and positioned right beside the man's throat.

"I won't"

"Err right. Well, carry on then." the solider says before running away in terror.

Jaffar sheaths his sword before turning and heading off, still looking displeased.

---FE---

Erk exits steps out one of the houses holding a blue object in his hands.

"It's interesting that a dancer would just give away a perfectly good Dragonshield" he says as he pockets the item.

"Oh hello Brother Erk"

The monk looks to the side to see Leila beside him. "Hey. You're...Leila, right?"

"Yes that's right," the archer nods. "This is the first time I think we have spoken."

"Your right. But please don't call me Brother. I really hate that title."

"Okay. Erk it is then."

"Yes. Now…" Erk suddenly pauses as he noticed an item attached to Leila's waist. "Excuse me? Could I see that hand mirror for a second?"

"My mirror? Sure" The archer says handing it over. "I was my mother's. She was a cleric and when I was younger she told me how she was given this mirror for being a part of their highest order."

"I see," Erk mutters looking at it very closely. "Yes, it is quite valuable. For a forgery."

"What?"

Erk hands the mirror back to Leila. "It's a fake. Look on the side of it. You can see the words 'made in Taiwan' right there."

Leila blinks in shock as she sees the wording for herself. "I can't believe I never noticed that before. Then again, Mom was always good at telling convincing stories to people. But, you said it's still valuable, right?"

"Yes"

"Good"

---FE---

"Stupid idiots declaring that I'm a girl," Lucius grumbles. "Rebecca, how are you holding up?"

Rebecca flies forward on her steed slamming her lance into another solider.

"These troops are tough but I'm doing okay." Rebecca pauses for a moment. "Umm Father Lucius…"

"You want to know how Prince Raymond is doing, don't you? I'm quite sure that he is quite well"

Rebecca nearly falls off her pegasus. "I, uh… well. Thank you. How could you have known?"

"Well, my dear as a priest, I travel a great deal and meet a lot of people."

Rebecca gasps "Are you saying that I have an open mind and am easy to read like a book?"

"What? No. I was talking about your sister."

"My sister?"

"Yes," Lucius says smiling. "You see I've met your sister before, and well how do I put this? She can be a bit of a gossip sometimes. She mentioned how you've had a crush on the prince. How you would secretly watch him, write his name down constantly in your diary, sometimes mumble his name in your sleep…"

- Thud -

This time Rebecca does fall off her pegasus.

"Are you alright?" Lucius asks.

"Yes, but I'm so embarrassed. I can't believe my sister said all that"

"There's nothing wrong about it," Lucius says chuckling a bit. "You know, I could tell you a few embarrassing stories about the prince himself"

"Really?" Rebecca's face lights up.

"Yes…although we might want to deal with all these enemies first"

"Right father," Rebecca says jumping back on to her winged steed. "I'll take care of them!"

The knight charges forward looking more determined then ever.

"Well now, that certainly motivated her"

---FE---

"Come on Florina. You can do this. Oh, I just need to get somebody to listen to me. Oh lord, please give me strength"

So focus on praying, Florina ends up slamming right straight into Jaffar. Again.

"Ow…wait you're that person from before. You're here to kill me aren't you?"

Jaffar stands there saying nothing as he slowly reaches for his sword.

"Wait…please. It doesn't matter w-what happens to me but just hear my words. The emperor he's…he has changed. The other nations must be warned before he wipes out all the light from the land."

"I don't care" Jaffar says with no emotion.

"How…how you can say that?"

Jaffar lets out a sigh before taking his hand off of his sword. Instead he pulls out a coin.

"We gamble"

"What?!"

Jaffar shows one side of the coin to Florina. "Heads, you live and I help you, Tails…" Jaffar shows the other side of the coin which is covered in blood, "You die"

Florina gulps. "You're kidding, right?"

"…"

A quick flick of the wrist and the coin goes soaring upwards. Florina watches its descent, her panic increasing by the second. Jaffar swiftly grabs the coin as it returns to him and looks at it.

"Heads, you live. …Hmm?"

Florina has already fainted on the ground. Jaffar looks at her for a second before shrugging, taking out his sword, and leaving to kill people.

---FE---

Lowen pants out of breath as he continues to run. However in this instance, it is not technically due to an enemy.

"Sir Wallace, is this really the appropriate time for this?"

"Blast it whelp! Of course it is." Wallace roars right behind him. "You were called girly earlier. That obvious means you too weak."

"But we come from different homelands. Shouldn't our fighting styles be diverse from one another?"

"What are you? Stupid? Now stop running so I can put you through my training program of running laps!"

"Maybe later"

Somehow spotting a house off to the side through his hair, Lowen ducks into it. Of course, as is the theme for today, he slams right into somebody and gets knocked down.

"You should watch where you're going," Lowen hears from a female voice as he tries to pick himself up. "I hope everyone back home is doing okay. Lets see now…vulnerabilities, antitoxins, extra weapons…good, its all here. Soon I'll be in the capital and then after that I'll become their greatest solider ever in the Grado army! Nothing is going to stop me!"

As the girl leaves Lowen finally gets back up. "Who was that?" he asks noticing some torches by his feet.

---FE---

"Fire!"

A huge fireball appears in midair before flying down and connecting with the head of an archer.

"Aggh!" he screams, "Not my hair, my beautiful precious hair!"

Farina smirks at the sight. "Farina: 15. Pathetic enemies: zero."

The mage keeps moving until she sees the arena and the unconscious Florina in front of it.

"An arena. This is perfect. Now I can show off my superior skills and get paid for it at the same time!"

Walking over to Florina, Farina starts nudging her with her foot. "Hey there. I'm sure you're having a nice nap there, but would you mind making with the healing mojo? I don't have all day."

Even though still technically unconscious, Florina somehow manages to raise her arm and active the healing light of her staff.

"Thank you," Farina says stepping over her and into the arena.

---FE---

"For the honour of Grado!" Seer yells out as he throws another javelin.

The various members of the party duck down causing the sharp projectile to barely miss.

"His armour is very thick," Dorcas observes. "I'm not sure if even my axe can penetrate it."

"Don't worry," Lyn says stepping forward. "I have a secret weapon."

Ten minutes earlier…

Lyn face has a big grin and wide eyes on her face. There is a glow about her, the kind you usually see on a kid during Christmas morning. "Is that…is that an armorslayer?"

"Indeed it is," the old man replied. "With this you can cut through even the…"

"That's nice! Thanks a lot," Lyn says grabbing the sword from him and running off."

"Wait a second! I wasn't actually planning on giving that to you! Lousy good for nothing kids"

Back at the present…

"Let's see you handle this knight boy!" Lyn yells swinging her new sword forward.

- Clang -

It bounces harmlessly off.

"Oh come on!"

"Foolish enemy of the Empire," Captain Seer gloats. "I am wearing the brand new ultra deluxe edition knight's armour. Guaranteed to resist all sword attacks and with a three year warranty!"

Lyn looks on as Seer readies another javelin when…

"Move" Jaffar says shoving the princess out of his way.

"Hey!" Lyn yells before blinking in confusion. "Wait a second. When did we recruit that guy?"

Killing Edge drawn out, Jaffar goes into a formal fighting stance, staring down Seer with an icy glare."

"Didn't you just hear what I said? Your measly sword attacks can't hurt me! Do your worst!"

- Swoosh -

Jaffar speeds forward, moving so fast that he created illusions of himself. Leaping in front of Seer he launches off a ton of invisible sword slashes on his armour in every possible part. He then quickly flips back to his original starting position.

Seer stands here completely unharmed. "I told you it wouldn't work. None of you can stand up to the might of the Empire!"

Jaffar gives the knight one last look before turning around and swiftly putting his sword away.

- Crack -

At that very second, Seer's armour breaks apart into a thousand pieces. As the metal rubble piles around his feet, the captain is left in nothing but a pair of white boxer shorts with cute little red hearts all over them.

"Grr…I'm not beaten yet! I still have my…"

The spear tip of Seer's javelin promptly falls off.

"…Oh, I give up. Being paid $8.50 an hour isn't worth this much loyalty."

Flawless Victory

---FE---

"Okay everyone!" Lyn shouts getting the attention of her troops. "I have a few announcements! First, off for saving the people here we got a reward." Lyn hold up a small silvery object in her hands. "It's a guiding ring. See? Needlessly risking our lives time and time again can pay off."

The group talks amongst itself and nods in agreement.

"Also, we have ourselves to more new members. First we have Florina, a cleric from Grado. Then there is this scary guy with the sword that still hasn't bothered to introduce himself."

Florina looks at all the people nervously while Jaffar just scoffs and walks away

"So what were you were saying earlier?" Marcus asks getting right next to Florina and causing her leap back a few feet in fright. "Err…what did I do?"

"I'm sorry," Florina says softly, "It's just that I have a bit of a phobia when it comes to men"

"A phobia of men?"

"Yes. You see I grew up in a nunnery and the head sister there kept on reminding all of us how we were suppose to be fearful of men and their evil, evil lustful ways."

"Ah. That would do it"

"Anyway, I'm a servant at the Grado temple. A few days ago, soldiers showed up and arrested my mentor."

"Do not worry," Marcus says confidently, "I'm sure that he will be fine"

"Umm…he was framed with false crimes executed three hours later"

"…Or not."

"But before he died, my mentor passed along an important message. He told me that the Emperor is planning to destroy the sacred stones."

"The Sacred Stones? The ones of legend?"

"Yes. As you know the Sacred Stones drove the powers of evil long ago. The relics were then passed on to the various nations. Grado has one but now the emperor seems to be planning to destroy them one by one"

Lyn shoots a glance at Marcus. "We have one of those things as well, right?"

"Yes your highness. It is in our royal temple. Still why would he want to do this? According to legend, the stones are the only thing that is keeping evil away"

"I don't know," Florina says sadly. "The emperor use to be so friendly, but now he's just become so evil. My mentor told me to warn the other keepers of the stones. So I started running, but guards say me and gave chase. Then I ended up here and well you know what happens next"

"Yeah, I do" Lyn leans over and whispers to Marcus. "So, should we believe her?"

"It is not wise to trust anyone from Grado right now. Still, a 7 year old could come up with a better cover story then this so I think she is being honest. Although, this is very troubling news. Princess, we cannot allow the stones to be destroyed."

"Yeah I know. As if we didn't have enough to deal with."

"_And so another chapter in the tale of Serafew city draws to a close. Or does it? Because can anyone truly escape from this place? Or will they be pulled back in, tempted by the promises of fortune, fame, and power that exist in its dark seedy…" _

"Would you give it a rest Matthew?" Leila yells out. "We're leaving now anyway."

"Alright, I'm coming! …Spoilsport"


	7. Chapter 5X

The area is nothing but a void. An unending inky blackness, that has no existence to be seen at all. Perfect silence fills the air until…

- Swoosh -

The sword master Guy leaps onto the scene. His long ponytail fluttering in an invisible wind, he quickly pulls out his sword and performs his mega cool critical hit attack. Then stopping, he holds out his sword in a dramatic pose, smiles, and faces outward.

"Franchise does not own Fire Emblem! Nintendo or some secondary company of theirs does!"

Guy keeps on smiling until he starts to blink in confusion as a thought comes to his mind.

"Hold on. We have never bothered with a disclaimer before. Why am I doing one now?"

From somewhere, a rolled up piece of paper bounces off his head. Bending down Guy picks it up and unfolds it.

"It's to hopefully keep your fans happy since you won't be appearing in the story for a while yet." He reads off of the note. "I guess that's okay. By the way, what character am I doing?"

Another ball of paper hits him.

"Trust me, you don't want to know." Guy pauses at this. "…Oh that's just great"

Letting out a sigh he turns and walks back into the darkness.

-----

Today Lyn and the rest of her party are not important. That's because they're not even appearing in this chapter.

"What?" Lyn screams out loud. "You haven't updated in months and now I'm not even getting an appearance? Why not?"

Well under some circumstances such as completing certain objectives, bonus chapters or missions may be unlocked. As such this is what we call a "Gaiden" chapter.

"But we didn't do anything to unlock a Gaiden chapter."

Err, that's beside the point. So anyway, you got the day off.

"I thought I was suppose to be the star," the princess mutters sadly.

Good grief. Look it's a one-time deal. There are no more bonus chapters after this.

"There better not be," Lyn warns as she reaches for her sword. "Because if there are…"

There isn't! I promise! Right, moving on then…

**Chapter 5 X: Universally United Unnerving Unbroken Helpful Heroic Herculean Heart**

The Place: Renvell

The Time: 2:15 pm

The Music: Villains Composition Number 9

With a mighty screech a Wyvern swoops into the fortress's throne room. Its rider dismounts and makes his way forward. At the sight of him, the general on the throne immediately moves to make room for him.

"Master Karel" the brown haired man calls out with a hint of nervousness. "What a lovely surprise. You're looking especially…bloody today."

Karel smiles a twisted smile and licks his blood-covered spear. "I was bored so I slaughter so my soldiers. That's beside the point. Tirado, have you captured Eliwood yet?"

"Err no sir. He is still fighting to the north of here."

Karel continues to glare at his subordinate. "And what about all those mercenaries I provided you with to get the job finished?"

"Eliwood is quite clever. His men strike quickly and then vanish back into the woods.We have doubled our numbers but still have difficulty fighting him because of the terrain.He has no army, just a small force of knights loyal to Renais. The prince's reputation as a strategist is well received. Well either that or your mercenaries are incompetent."

Karel's glare intensifies to level six.

"Which of course can not be the case sir" Tirado quickly adds on.

"I grow impatient of waiting Tirado. My spear hungers for Eliwood's blood. I want to fight him, kill him and then kill him some more. Find him quickly for me or I just might have to start practicing on you."

The general gulps. "That's not necessary sir. Just give me an army and I guarantee that I can capture Eliwood."

"I'm listening"

"We take the army and had north of the fort after him."

"This plan sounds like a lot of work with very little killing."

"Hear me out master. I happen to have a "friend" who is by Prince Eliwood's side that will help us when the time is right"

In a nearby groove of trees….

A man stands poised at the edge of the forest, his stance full of confidence. Short ruby hair. A pleasant smile. Thick shiny amour glistens in the sun with a fluttering cape attached and a spear in hand. It is Eliwood, prince of Renais, mighty fighter, and all around cheesy good guy.

"Kent. Sain. How are our supplies and weapons holding up?"

Two cavaliers step forward. One is serious looking with red hair in green armor and the other is a bit more re with brown hair in red amour. Sain, the one in red armor, speaks first.

"We're down to our last few weapons and only a bit of bread and water to eat. Are you sure we can't go to the nearby village? I think they have a Wal-Mart…"

"No Sain," Eliwood cries out dramatically. "This is enemy territory and doing so would endanger innocent people. I cannot allow that to happen. Why it goes against everything in the Heroic Guide to Being Heroic!"

From a pocket, Eliwood whips out a small paperback book with the aforementioned title on the front, causing Sain to groan.

"I knew you were going to say that. But we really do need to figure out what to do. Plus I'm hungry…"

"Quiet Sain" Kent says speaking up. "We must consider things very carefully. We have heard reports that the invasion into Renais has increased in the capital has already fallen."

"So soon…" Eliwood mutters in thought. "Still, my father is in the capital and he will not give up without a fight. I'm sure things are okay there for the moment."

Number of days since Renais got owned and King Oswin kicked the bucket: 16

"Anyway, Kent. Sain. We must press onward and keep distracting the troops as best we can. Hopefully, we'll be able to provide my father and Lyndis more time. Kent, have you heard anything from Harken? I sent him to scout ahead"

"No word yet my lord"

"He's probably goofing off somewhere"

"Actually, I'm right here"

The three turn around to see Harken, a blonde haired young man dressed in the noble clothes of a paladin. He salutes prince Eliwood before quickly going into his report.

"There is Grado troops spread out at several points around our camp, my lord. As well, another large battalion of soldiers has made its way out of Renvall. Staying in this area any longer would be quite unwise"

"I see…"

Kent looks over at his prince. "It would seem that we have certainty caught Grado's attention this time. Should we retreat back to the capital then?"

"No" Eliwood responds causing various gasps of surprise. "Instead, we are going to attack and conquer Renvall!"

"…"

"…"

"Err…Permission to say that you have gone insane sir?"

"Permission granted Sain. But don't you see? With all those soldiers out searching for us, the stronghold will be less protected. We'll be able to slip in, take it over, and force Grado to waste resources getting it back. It's perfect. The enemy will never see it coming."

"Yes. Because it is insane."

"Watch your tongue Sain! That is our prince you are speaking to!"

"No, let him be Kent. I know my plan might seem a little out there but I assure you that I have not lost all my sanity. In fact, I even have a foolproof plan to sneak into the base"

---FE---

At the gates of Renvall two guards stand at attention ready to respond to any attacks and completely bored out of their minds at the moment.

"Man, nothing ever happens out here" The first complains.

"Yup"

"Hey, hold on a second. Are those a bunch of cardboard boxes moving over there?"

The second solider looks out at the field. Sure enough there are four cardboard boxes, overturned and moving towards them in a slightly shaking line bumping into each other occasionally.

"Sure looks like it"

"Ah. …So how's the family?"

"Oh, not too bad"

---FE---

"I can't believe that actually worked" Sain mutters in disbelief as he and the rest of the group throw the boxes off inside the fortress.

Eliwood just gives a grin and a thumbs up as he unattached a huge badass looking spear from his back.

"Is that…" Harken asks slowly.

"Yes. It's my personal weapon Reginleif and with it, I shall lead the way to victory! Let's go men."

"Wait sire" Kent cries out. "We should try to for a strategy first"

It is too little too late however as Eliwood charges forward with yell. At the sound of the battle cry enemies appear and move to intercept him. A knight and an archer fire off javelins and arrows but the Renais prince easily deflects them. Just before he reaches the guards, Eliwood plants his spear into the stone floor and pole vaults upwards.

Ally and enemy alike are frozen in place as the prince flies through the air gracefully twisting and flipping as if in slow motion. Time only resumes when Eliwood lands back on his feet directly behind the Grado forces and lashes out with Reginleif taking all of them out with one strike.

Kent, Sain, and Harken are dumbfounded at first until they start to clap and hold up scorecards with a 10, 8.5, and a 2 respectfully.

---FE---

"Harken"

The paladin stops turning back to see his prince moving towards him. "Yes Lord Eliwood"

"Your injury still hasn't healed up from the last battle has it?"

"It's not that bad. I can still move my back a little bit"

Eliwood blinks. "Your back? I thought you said it was your leg?"

"Well, yes but you see," Harken starts while sweat begins to pour down his forehead, "it's a magical moving injury?"

"That makes it much worse," Eliwood says showing deep concern. "To think you have to endure this on top of losing your wife not too long ago. Have I apologize for Isadora's accidental food poisoning? If I had remembered she was allergic to fish, I would never have had it served for dinner"

Harken grits his teeth together trying to stay calm, "Yes my lord. Several times in fact"

"Anyway, I know. Let me carry your stuff for you!"

"What? No prince, that is quite all right"

"Nonsense," Eliwood replies as he reaches over to Harken and starts taking items. "Let's see here; silver sword, steel lance, some vulnerary, an extra copy of my battle strategies, and a large sack of money with the word bribes on it. Wow, you really came prepared today Harken. But at least now your back won't be in so much pain"

"But…how can I…what will…err thank you prince Eliwood" Harken finally mutters out.

---FE---

Kent takes a panting breath as he runs his sword into an enemy druid. "There seems to be no end to these troops. Still we do seem to making progress. How are you holding up Sain? …Sain?"

Kent stops and looks around surprised that his fellow cavalier is not beside him. Looking back, he sees Sain hunched over a large book.

Kent gallops back towards Sain causing him to look up. "Hmm…oh Kent? How have you been?"

"Fine. Sain, what are you doing back here. Are you…are you painting?"

"No. Well, its more like sketching actually" Sain replies holding up the book and the piece of charcoal he uses to draw.

"In the middle of a battle?" Kent asks with disbelief.

"Sure. I just feel it is important to keep a record of these battles with these pictures"

Kent stares at him for a moment before grabbing the book out of his hands and looking through the pages. "Sain…these are all sketches of girls" he finally says.

Sain just shrugs back at his companion. "What can I say? I have an artistic appreciation for the female form."

"That's not artistic! That's you being a pervert!"

"Calm down. Calm down. Man, you really need to relax a bit."

"Get back to fighting!" Kent screams as he whacks Sain on the head with the sketchbook. "Act like a cavalier for once in your life."

"Fine. Right away oh great and honourable Sir Kent, perfect and mighty commander of all the knights of Renais"

"…Oh brother"

---FE---

A browned hair mercenary with sword in hand smiles triumphantly from the throne. "Just because I'm a substitute boss doesn't mean I'm any less dangerous. Today you will pay for your foolish prince Eliwood. Because today you face the blade of Zonta."

Eliwood and his troops look over at him. "One moment please" the prince says before the four of them form a huddle.

"Huh? Hey, we're supposed to be fighting here!"

"We just need a moment to discuss our strategy."

"…Fine" Zonta grumbles as he starts to tap his foot out of irritation while the group begins to talk"

"This is a perfect plan"

"But what if our opponent gets a critical hit?"

"Z or whatever his name is doesn't seem that tough."

"No. Kent is right. We can't take that risk."

Zonta lets out a loud yawn.

"How about maneuver 22?"

"No way. I hate maneuver 22."

"Also, we don't have any dresses with us"

"Oh right"

Zonta begins to flip through a magazine.

"All right. Is everyone in agreement?"

"Yes"

"Yup"

"Indeed"

Zonta face lights up. "Finally"

"After we win, we will get pepperoni, mushrooms, and extra cheese on our victory pizza!"

And Zonta face dims back down. "That's enough! If you won't fight me then I'll fight you!" he cries out moving off the throne and towards them.

"…NOW!!!"

Before Zonta can react, the four Renais soldiers gang pile on top of him and start pounding him with their weapons.

"Ow…Hey…at least let me have a cool death lie!"

---FE---

Eliwood leans back on the throne with a well-earned smile of victory. "Ah yes, the old long winded fake group huddle to annoy the enemy into coming off the stat boosting and healing throne tactic. It never fails. Hmm, that's odd. Harken has mysteriously disappeared again."

"I don't think now is the best time to be worrying about that" Sain says rushing back into the room in a panic. "We got company"

"Reinforcements, so soon? How many are we talking about Sain?" Kent asks.

"A lot!"

Eliwood gets up from the throne while picking up his spear. "Oh come now Sain. I'm sure it's not that bad."

---FE---

"Well then again…"

The three stand outside Renvall, which is now completely surrounded on all sides by an army of Wyvern troops. At the forefront is Karel glaring sadistically at them.

"Well now, you captured Renvall. That's impressive. It makes you worthy enough to die by my spear. I take it that you would be Prince Eliwood then."

"That's correct" Eliwood replies stepping forward. "And who might you be?"

"General Karel, the moonstone"

"The moonstone?"

"Yes"

"Are you strong"

"Of course I am"

"Do you plan to kill us?"

"Most defiantly"

"And how did you know that I was going to attack Renvall?"

"Because we have a…grrr. Enough with the twenty questions! Throw down your weapons and surrender to me."

"But you just said you were going to kill us."

"Surrender now and start begging. Maybe then I'll make your deaths slightly less painful"

"I say we fight them Lord Eliwood," Kent whispers as he reaches for his sword.

Sain quickly speaks as well. "This man does not represent me"

Eliwood steps forward. No words are spoken but no one can deny the calm confidence radiating from him. "I don't think so. Karel, nice to meet me and all but I'm afraid we have to be going now. Kent, Sain, are you ready?"

Both knights nod their head as they step forward besides their prince.

Karel laughs at this. "Are you mad? You're surrounded on all sides. Do you really think you could fight past all of my Wyvern knights?"

"I don't make fights that I can't win." Eliwood pauses for a moment before turning and pointing to the side. "Hey, look at that. There's a bunch of really strong warriors just waiting to be slaughtered in battle over there!"

Karel's head snaps 180 degrees as he looks off to the side. "Where?"

"Quick. Exit stage left!" Eliwood yells as they run off in the opposite direction.

Karel turns back, with an enraged look at his escaping prey. "Cure you Eliwood. You may have escaped for now but you have not seen the last of me. I will hunt you to the end of the earth. And when I find you, you will be mine. You and your little dog too."

A Wyvern knight flies forward. "Sir, we could probably still catch up to…. agghhhh!"

Karel stares back at the solider annoyed as he slowly pulls his spear back out of the man's chest. He stares at the rest of the now very nervous troops.

"Never interrupt one of my villain monologues"


End file.
